Monthly archives for November, 2010

An Arianespace Ariane 5 rocket carrying a dual payload of Intelsat 17 and HYLAS 1 spacecraft has been cleared to launch on November 26th. The launch is scheduled to launch from Kourou, French Guiana with a launch window between 18:39 and 21:54 GMT (3:39pm and 6:54pm local).

The two spacecraft are communications satellites.

Positioned at 66 degrees East, INTELSAT 17 will deliver a wide range of communication services for Europe, the Middle East, Russia and Asia. Built by Space Systems/Loral of the United States, this powerful satellite will weigh 5,540 kg at launch. It will also enable Intelsat to expand its successful Asian video distrubution neighborhood. INTELSAT 17 will replace INTELSAT 702.

HYLAS 1 was built by an industrial consortium formed by EADS Astrium and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), using a I-2K platform. Fitted with Ka-band and Ku-band transponders, the satellite will be positioned at 33.5 degrees West, and will be the first European satellite to offer high-speed broadband services across all of Europe. HYLAS 1 will weigh 2,570 kg at launch, and has a design life exceeding 15 years.

WASHINGTON — NASA issued the following statements Monday after the Federal Aviation Administration issued SpaceX a license for spacecraft reentry:

“Congratulations to the SpaceX team for receiving the Federal Aviation Administration’s first-ever commercial license to reenter a spacecraft from Earth orbit,” NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden said. “With this license in hand, SpaceX can proceed with its launch of the Dragon capsule. The flight of Dragon will be an important step toward commercial cargo delivery to the International Space Station. NASA wishes SpaceX every success with the launch.”

Sitting on the launch pad of SLC-37B at Cape Canaveral is the latest Delta 4 Rocket waiting to hoist the NRO satellite code named NROL-32 into orbit. Shrouded in secrecy the satellite is believed to be an eavesdropping spaceship for the US.

The Delta 4 is flying in the heavy configuration. This is where 2 external boosters are strapped either side of the main booster to provide lift of the heaviest unmanned space ships. This will be the third operational flight of the Delta 4 Heavy, the first being 10Nov07 and the second 17Jan09. The Delta 4 Heavy is currently the most powerful of the US Expendable Launch Vehicles in service.

NRO Director Bruce Carlson said this rocket launch would carry “the largest satellite in the world on it.”. Although nothing has been mentioned it is widely suggested that this will be a “Mentor” spacecraft which will gather intelligence for the US agencies from a geo-synchronous orbit of 22,300 miles.

The rocket was originally scheduled to launch on Friday, but temperature sensors prevented the tanking causing a launch delay then eventually a scrub. Following the scrubbed Nov. 19 launch attempt, the launch team examined the port and starboard common core strap-on boosters in the areas where they received anomalous temperature data signatures during Friday’s launch countdown. After inspections by engineers, it was determined that the temperature data signatures were caused by issues with two temperature sensors. New temperature sensors have been installed and tested, which has resolved the issue.

When foam was being removed in preparation for repairs on the Shuttle Discovery’s external tank, two 9 inch long cracks were found, one on each side of an aluminum strengthening stringer that is part of the inter-tank structure.

This is not the first time that this problem has been seen, but repairs have never taken place while the Shuttle was on the pad. Engineers are reviewing the problem and expressed some hope that the repairs can be done at the pad before the scheduled November 30th launch.

Today’s launch of STS-133 Space Shuttle Discovery was ‘scrubbed’ due to a problem found when attempting to fill the hydrogen fuel tank on board the rocket.

Initially they had isolated the problem to a GUCP (Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate) that removes surplus gasses to the hydrogen vent. This is not an unknown situation and has occurred on two other missions. This time however the leak was a lot larger than previous issues.

The teams are now draining the tank and filling it with helium to make it inert. This safing process takes 24 hours so the engineers will not even get to look at the problem on the rocket until tomorrow morning. The whole turn-round for the issue assuming a quick fix would have been 72 hours making monday the earliest possible launch date.

After the GUCP issue de-tanking had started a 7″ crack was detected on the inter-tank foam which is a potential ice hazard. Discussions need to take place to determine what action needs to take place.

STS-133 Discovery on LC-39 one booster and the top of the orbiter become visible.

As Space Shuttle Discovery STS-133 prepares for launch the protective Rotating Service Structure is swung out of the way allowing the rocket to lift off unimpeded. This is quite a lengthy task taking around 30 minutes to complete.

The video shows the RSS retraction from the orbiter on the 3rd of November 2010. We were ferried out to the launch pad just before dusk, but a nearby thunderstorm and the MMT press conference interrupted the process.

We arrived back at the LC-39A launch complex just in time to set up and record the (in)action. The rollback was so slow that it was difficult to see any movement. In fact the best way to make sure it was moving was to turn away and look back a few minutes later.

The original video was about 30 minutes long, so I speeded up the retraction and compressed 20+ minutes down to 2.5 minutes. After the retraction we got a great view of the space ship on the pad. I even managed to get a close-up of one of the crew working inside the Discovery Orbiter.

As part of Air Force Week, on October 25, 2010, Wired4Space.com and other members of the press toured the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station as guests of the 45th Space Wing and the 920th Rescue Squadron. As part of the tour, we viewed Shuttle Discovery from outside of the perimeter fence, at a distance of about 1400’. From that position, with the Rotating Service Structure in the closed position, Discovery’s orbiter was completely obscured, but the liquid fuel tank and the aft booster were visible. The RSS usually remains in the closed position from the day the crawler delivers the stack to the pad until less than a day before launch. Occasionally, it is opened to install a payload in the Shuttle cargo bay, and then promptly closed again for protection of the Shuttle.

That afternoon, the tour group members were manifested on either a HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter or a HC-130P/N King fixed wing aircraft. After takeoff, they opened the rear “roll on ramp”, and we all got a chance to sit on the ramp and view the facilities of KSC including the Shuttle Landing Strip, the VAB, Shuttle launch pads 39A and 38B, Atlas pad 41 and SpaceX pad 40 as we flew around the area and up and down the beach in sight of the northern pads.READ MORE »

With little happening today until the MMT (Mission Management Team) meeting this afternoon I thought it was a good time to focus on the Space Shuttle STS-133 Discovery payloads. Of course we all gaze at the stars and wish to be Astronauts but the main reason we have people in space is to manage the research projects. These projects form the payloads of the Space Shuttle.

The STS-133 mission is important for a number of reasons. The first humanoid robot: Robonaut 2 affectionally known as R2 will be flying up to the ISS. There will be a Lego Shuttle model flying on Discovery. There are 9 research experiments being transported including some very interesting projects, not least of which is a microbiological medical experiment. If you have been following ISS news recently you will have realised that there was a problem with the stations’s cooling system. Packed into the payload bay of discovery are some components, including a radiator, for the heating/cooling systems of the Space Station. Finally thee will be a new room added to the ISS.

Space Shuttle Discovery STS-133 is carrying 9 research experiments up into space in the mid-deck area.

Of the experiments the one that stood out for me was a groundbreaking study at the molecular level. This microbiology is identifying the causes of cascading effect of illnesses in molecules. Essentially the concept is that by identifying and controlling the initial outbreak as it occurs the cascading effect as it spreads through your immune system can be halted thus effectively preventing the illness.

Discussing this with Dr Mille Hughes-Fulford, micro-biologist and Space Shuttle STS-40 veteran, she told me that this research in space was critical for a number of reasons, but the most important was that normally healthy immune systems become vulnerable in low gravity environments. Of the 29 Apollo astronauts 15 returned home either with infections or picked up infections within a few days of returning to earth. Research has proved that the cause of this was the effect of low gravity on the immune system. This make Space an ideal environment for micro-biological experiments. As astronauts are among the healthiest people on (or off) earth then all other causes of infection can be ruled out, making the identification of the molecules starting the cascade much easier. Dr Hughes-Fulford suggested that this research could not only be the end of the common cold, but will have far wider implications for all sorts of illness, including Asthma and other allergic conditions.

Normally this sort of research takes about 10-20 years from experimentation to being productised, but Dr Hughes-Fulford suggested that her research may well reap rewards much faster than that, possibly even within 3 years.

1 year ago the Ares 1 was the last rocket launched form LC-39B at the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral in Florida. Since then it has been dormant and now we are seeing the deconstruction of the RSS and Gantry used for the Space Shuttle launches. This will lay bare the launch pad ready for repurposing for the next phase in space exploration: the Heavy Lift programme heading back to the moon, Mars and beyond.

The video was filmed just outside the security fencing on Launch Pad 39B as part of the media activities for the Discovery Space Shuttle STS-133. We were able to monitor the demolition of the current Shuttle servicing structures which will be removed by the contractor between now and February 2011.

Today at Kennedy Space Center, in view of the countdown clock and the Space Shuttle Discovery STS-133, NASA Education and Lego announced a partnership for educating our children by promoting Lego in space.

Astronaut Leland Melvin and Stephan Turnipseed President Lego Education announced the partnership with an aim to promoting STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). Lego being an excellent tool to assist in the development of children at an early age and through different stages of their development.

Space Shuttle Discovery STS-133 will launch with a payload including a small Lego Shuttle model, this will then return to earth on November 17th with Discovery. Space Shuttle Endeavour will launch with a number of Lego kits and will make its mark as being the flight introducing the building of Lego models to space.

Tomorrow for the launch there will be a large tent set up on the NASA causeway in view of the launch pad where kids can build Lego models whilst waiting for the launch to take place.

Sponsorship by Google

Twitter Feed

Photo of the day

KSC Launch Pad iPhone App

iPhone App: KSC Launch Pad now available!

NOW ONLY $0.99 / £0.59

Are you visiting Kennedy Space Center? Do you want to see a rocket launch?

If so then KSC Launch Pad is the only app you will need. Using local knowledge it shows you the best places to watch from and identifies all the major points of interest in and arround Kennedy Space Center.